A lathe for the wife.... advice

[stigomery]

Hi,

I’m sure this question has been asked a thousand times so I apologise for potentially covering old ground. Buying second hand isn’t really an option at this point in time so making the most of a new lathe is what’s on the cards – your advice is greatly appreciated.

Having used a lathe in her past, and more recently gotten excited by the idea, she has requested one for Xmas. I know nothing about lathes other than one bit of advice, “make sure that the spindle is pointed rather than toothed so that if the chisel jams the wood stops spinning and you lose no fingers”.

So, I’m working in the £150 ish price bracket for something my wife can use to make small bowls, candle stick holders, bottle stoppers etc…

I was thinking something like this (£140): Lumberjack SWL350 375W 230V Variable Speed Wood Lathe Starter Kit
Or perhaps this (which looks much more robust) (£160): Draper 250W 230V Variable Speed Mini Wood Lathe
And perhaps these tools: Sealey Wood Turning Chisel Set
And a book: Turning Wood by Richard Raffan

What advice can you offer me?
I’ve read that some cheap lathes have a tendency to flex making work frustrating – surely it can be bolted to a sizable slab of wood for rigidity?

Many thanks in advance

Stig

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Welcome. Take her to join a club, it'll save you and her hassle and money. The problem with cheap lathes is that everything about them is light, so you could bolt one to a railway sleeper and the bearings would still be suspect and the bed, rest etc. would still bounce. Lathes at that level are meant for light pulls, drawer knobs, pens etc. - anything over and above that and you'll struggle. There's someone here atm having his motor cut out doing 6" bowls on a small Charnwood.
Don't waste your cash - find a club.
Incidentally, the book to go for is A Foundation Course by Keith Rowley. You can get it quite cheaply from Amazon or Waterstones Marketplace.

 

[stigomery]

Take her to join a club, it'll save you and her hassle and money.

Great idea - but alas it's not really an option... work/family means it will be short periods of dipping in and out of the garage. Thanks for the advice on the book.

So, reading into your response, Charnwood is a more respected brand?

Perhaps I could push to £200 for a W815 Mini Lathe if it meant it the lathe might actually work/last longer than a week...

(P.S. having something at home also means I get to play with it ;-)

 

[bugbear]

Take her to join a club, it'll save you and her hassle and money.

Great idea - but alas it's not really an option... work/family means it will be short periods of dipping in and out of the garage. Thanks for the advice on the book.

So, reading into your response, Charnwood is a more respected brand?

Perhaps I could push to £200 for a W815 Mini Lathe if it meant it the lathe might actually work/last longer than a week...

(P.S. having something at home also means I get to play with it ;-)

The point of a club is to try-before-you-buy, see what sort of wood turning
activities you (she) enjoys, and which lathes suit you, and get advice.

BugBear

 

[Glynne]

What the guys said.....
You also have to factor in: -
Tools ( chisels, gouges etc.) as you mention
A means of sharpening her turning tools
A chuck if bowls are going to be her thing - you can do without but it makes life a lot easier
Abrasives, finishes etc.
And all of this before you look at dust control.

You don't have to join a club, but most would be more than happy to offer advice.

 

[stigomery]

You also have to factor in: -
Tools ( chisels, gouges etc.) as you mention
A means of sharpening her turning tools
A chuck if bowls are going to be her thing - you can do without but it makes life a lot easier
Abrasives, finishes etc.
And all of this before you look at dust control.

Thanks - we have all of the above (other than a chuck) as I do a lot of green woodworking

 

[nev]

I would imagine that the lowest priced new lathes that would be recommended would be from Record Power or Axminster. For example..http://www.recordpower.co.uk/product/wo ... l2u1XanxxA
http://www.axminster.co.uk/machinery/la ... rder=price

Slightly blowing your budget but if you want a lathe that's safe, more than use usable and will last a decent while I don't think there's much , new, in your suggested price.

If the budget doesn't stretch to some thing like above whatever you do buy decent gouges (chisels) , again Record Power, Sorby, Crown, Hamlet etc (just search this forum for 'Which gouge?')

Also unfortunately for your wallet you will need to sharpen the gouges regularly, in some cases every few minutes mostly every session, so a sharpening device is an essential not an option. The minimum would be a 6 or 8 inch bench grinder with an appropriate wheel on it, again Record power about 50 quid.

I think that what make an alternative gift would be a woodturning lesson or two with a nearby pro and then you or the missus can invest the required amount as when it becomes addictive. If that's an option then it may be worth contacting http://www.cambridge-woodturners.co.uk/index.html for some help in that direction.
Cheers

 

[BearTricks]

I have a titan bench grinder from screwfix for sharpening. Better motor than the other budget brands but as it's cheap, the build quality isn't the best. You'll need to fit any bench grinder not specifically marketed towards wood turners with a better wheel. White or pink. Mines white from abtec.

Sharpening is a pain in the backside but it's something that you have to do. Make it as easy as possible for your wife because it's the tedious things like that that will make her think twice about going out to the lathe if it's more difficult than it needs to be.

Sent from my LG-H815 using Tapatalk

 

[Phil Pascoe]

You don't have to go to club every club night - we've got people who don't turn up to turn at all from one year to the next.

 

[thick_mike]

Am I the only one that saw the title of this thread and thought, "sounds like a fair swap!"?

 

[bugbear]

Am I the only one that saw the title of this thread and thought, "sounds like a fair swap!"?

No. No, you're not.

BugBear

 

[stigomery]

Am I the only one that saw the title of this thread and thought, "sounds like a fair swap!"?

You haven't met my wife!

OK - think I might go for an Axminster at £209

 

[deema]

I was wondering what sort of lathe you can get for a wife......I'm possible tempted to look at the trade options myself.

 

[Doris]

What's wrong with getting a second hand lathe? You're more likely to get everything you need thrown in if you went second hand. Possibly chisels, chucks and perhaps some blanks thrown in with the lathe.

My "new" lathe I got a couple of months ago second hand for £150 and came with chucks and loads of other bits and pieces.

 

[blackrodd]

What's wrong with getting a second hand lathe? You're more likely to get everything you need thrown in if you went second hand. Possibly chisels, chucks and perhaps some blanks thrown in with the lathe.

My "new" lathe I got a couple of months ago second hand for £150 and came with chucks and loads of other bits and pieces.

+1 for the above, secondhand bargains are a real saver and as I have a Record, bought from APT years ago,
I recommend them, A Good solid starter lathe in my book, and easy to pass on.
regards Rodders

 

[woodpig]

I think nev's Record power link is the best bet. Looks like a very good deal for a beginner to me. All you need to add is a grinder.

 

[Doris]

Or if he went down the second hand route he could get a coronet, which some have the same 3/4" 16tpi threads so new parts could be bought still.

Another problem I encountered with cheap lathes, particularly the clarke models is that they have weird threads that make it almost impossible to buy chucks and replacement centres for.

 

[BearTricks]

I've got a Clarke chuck which is enough of a pile of useless garbage that I'd never even consider buying Clarke tools again. Luckily it came free with my lathe as the bloke who sold it to me hated it just as much as I do.

Sent from my LG-H815 using Tapatalk

 

[stigomery]

Well, after some research and online trawling with the occasional flutter on FleaBay I got the wife a 1998 Record RPML 300 mini lathe for £90. Seems just the ticket, weighs about 40Kgs and is solid as a rock... thankfully I steered clear of the cheap/lightweight models. Has 3/4 x 16TPI and MT1 which I think is good for acquiring future toolsets/chucks etc.

I have some basic HSS chisels, head- and tail-stock and the recommended book+DVD. The other part of her present is a 2 day course with Peter Child in Essex...

Thanks for the advice... that's my Xmas shopping done.

Now, anyone who wants to swap my wife for a lathe she now comes with a free lathe included, so i'll keep the lathe and you can have the wife... refunds not accepted!

 

[AJB Temple]

Sounds great. Please send pics of wife and elaborate on her other skills.

I think you went exactly the right route and booking course is a good idea. I recently went down a similar route and bought an immaculate Record CL1 and heavy duty metal stand stand from a member here. This came with various rests and accessories and he kindly threw in a chisel as well. I picked up a set of Robert Sorby chisels on eBay and another member has kindly given me some bowl blanks out of various hardwoods. Plus I have some apple, pine, field maple and walnut from my own felled trees at home. Outlay so far under £200. (Already have various grinders etc). This is less than the 2 day course I am going on in January as I realised I need some tuition to be safe. I expect I need a chuck as well but have no idea what to buy yet.

Let us know how your wife gets on and maybe persuade her to join here.